Chapter IV: Part 4

_Freydis causes the Brothers to be put to Death._--There was now much talk anew, about a Wineland-voyage, for this was reckoned both a profitable and an honorable enterprise. The same summer that Karlsefni arrived from Wineland, a ship from Norway arrived in Greenland. This ship was commanded by two brothers, Helgi and Finnbogi, who passed the winter in Greenland. They were descended from an Icelandic family of the East-firths. It is now to be added, that Freydis,[62-1] Eric's daughter, set out from her home at Gardar, and waited upon the brothers, Helgi and Finnbogi, and invited them to sail with their vessel to Wineland, and to share with her equally all of the good things which they might succeed in obtaining there. To this they agreed, and she departed thence to visit her brother, Leif, and ask him to give her the house which he had caused to be erected in Wineland, but he made her the same answer [as that which he had given Karlsefni], saying, that he would lend the house, but not give it. It was stipulated between Karlsefni and Freydis, that each should have on shipboard thirty able-bodied men, besides the women; but Freydis immediately violated this compact, by concealing five men more [than this number], and this the brothers did not discover before they arrived in Wineland. They now put out to sea, having agreed beforehand, that they would sail in company, if possible, and although they were not far apart from each other, the brothers arrived somewhat in advance, and carried their belongings up to Leif's house. Now when Freydis arrived, her ship was discharged, and the baggage carried up to the house, whereupon Freydis exclaimed: "Why did you carry your baggage in here?" "Since we believed," said they, "that all promises made to us would be kept." "It was to me that Leif loaned the house," says she, "and not to you." Whereupon Helgi exclaimed: "We brothers cannot hope to rival thee in wrong-dealing." They thereupon carried their baggage forth, and built a hut, above the sea, on the bank of the lake, and put all in order about it; while Freydis caused wood to be felled, with which to load her ship. The winter now set in, and the brothers suggested, that they should amuse themselves by playing games. This they did for a time, until the folk began to disagree, when dissensions arose between them, and the games came to an end, and the visits between the houses ceased; and thus it continued far into the winter. One morning early, Freydis arose from her bed, and dressed herself, but did not put on her shoes and stockings. A heavy dew had fallen, and she took her husband's cloak, and wrapped it about her, and then walked to the brothers' house, and up to the door, which had been only partly closed by one of the men, who had gone out a short time before. She pushed the door open, and stood, silently, in the doorway for a time. Finnbogi, who was lying on the innermost side of the room, was awake, and said: "What dost thou wish here, Freydis?" She answers: "I wish thee to rise, and go out with me, for I would speak with thee." He did so, and they walked to a tree, which lay close by the wall of the house, and seated themselves upon it. "How art thou pleased here?" says she. He answers: "I am well pleased with the fruitfulness of the land, but I am ill-content with the breach which has come between us, for, methinks, there has been no cause for it." "It is even as thou sayest," says she, "and so it seems to me; but my errand to thee is, that I wish to exchange ships with you brothers, for that ye have a larger ship than I, and I wish to depart from here." "To this I must accede," says he; "if it is thy pleasure." Therewith they parted, and she returned home, and Finnbogi to his bed. She climbed up into bed, and awakened Thorvard with her cold feet, and he asked her why she was so cold and wet. She answered, with great passion: "I have been to the brothers," says she, "to try to buy their ship, for I wished to have a larger vessel, but they received my overtures so ill, that they struck me, and handled me very roughly; what time thou, poor wretch, wilt neither avenge my shame nor thy own, and I find, perforce, that I am no longer in Greenland, moreover I shall part from thee unless thou wreakest vengeance for this." And now he could stand her taunts no longer, and ordered the men to rise at once, and take their weapons, and this they did, and they then proceeded directly to the house of the brothers, and entered it, while the folk were asleep, and seized and bound them, and led each one out, when he was bound; and as they came out, Freydis caused each one to be slain. In this wise all of the men were put to death, and only the women were left, and these no one would kill. At this Freydis exclaimed: "Hand me an axe!" This was done, and she fell upon the five women, and left them dead. They returned home, after this dreadful deed, and it was very evident that Freydis was well content with her work. She addressed her companions, saying: "If it be ordained for us, to come again to Greenland, I shall contrive the death of any man who shall speak of these events. We must give it out, that we left them living here, when we came away." Early in the spring, they equipped the ship, which had belonged to the brothers, and freighted it with all of the products of the land, which they could obtain, and which the ship would carry. Then they put out to sea, and, after a prosperous voyage, arrived with their ship in Ericsfirth early in the summer. Karlsefni was there, with his ship all ready to sail, and was awaiting a fair wind; and people say, that a ship richer laden, than that which he commanded, never left Greenland.

_Concerning Freydis._--Freydis now went to her home, since it had remained unharmed during her absence. She bestowed liberal gifts upon all of her companions, for she was anxious to screen her guilt. She now established herself at her home; but her companions were not all so close-mouthed, concerning their misdeeds and wickedness, that rumors did not get abroad at last. These finally reached her brother, Leif, and he thought it a most shameful story. He thereupon took three of the men, who had been of Freydis's party, and forced them all at the same time to a confession of the affair, and their stories entirely agreed. "I have no heart," says Leif, "to punish my sister, Freydis, as she deserves, but this I predict of them, that there is little prosperity in store for their offspring." Hence it came to pass, that no one from that time forward thought them worthy of aught but evil. It now remains to take up the story from the time when Karlsefni made his ship ready, and sailed out to sea. He had a successful voyage, and arrived in Norway safe and sound. He remained there during the winter, and sold his wares, and both he and his wife were received with great favor by the most distinguished men of Norway. The following spring he put his ship in order for the voyage to Iceland; and when all his preparations had been made, and his ship lying at the wharf, awaiting favorable winds, there came to him a Southerner, a native of Bremen in the Saxonland, who wished to buy his "house-neat."[65-1] "I do not wish to sell it," said he. "I will give thee half a 'moerk' in gold for it," says the Southerner. This Karlsefni thought a good offer, and accordingly closed the bargain. The Southerner went his way, with the "house-neat," and Karlsefni knew not what wood it was, but it was "moesur," come from Wineland.

Karlsefni sailed away, and arrived with his ship in the north of Iceland, in Skagafirth. His vessel was beached there during the winter, and in the spring he bought Glaumboeiar-land, and made his home there, and dwelt there as long as he lived, and was a man of the greatest prominence. From him and his wife, Gudrid, a numerous and goodly lineage is descended. After Karlsefni's death, Gudrid, together with her son, Snorri, who was born in Wineland, took charge of the farmstead; and when Snorri was married, Gudrid went abroad, and made a pilgrimage to the South, after which she returned again to the home of her son, Snorri, who had caused a church to be built at Glaumboer. Gudrid then took the veil and became an anchorite, and lived there the rest of her days. Snorri had a son, named Thorgeir, who was the father of Ingveld, the mother of Bishop Brand. Hallfrid was the name of the daughter of Snorri, Karlsefni's son; she was the mother of Runolf, Bishop Thorlak's father. Biorn was the name of [another] son of Karlsefni and Gudrid; he was the father of Thorunn, the mother of Bishop Biorn. Many men are descended from Karlsefni, and he has been blessed with a numerous and famous posterity; and of all men Karlsefni has given the most exact accounts of all these voyages, of which something has now been

recounted.

FOOTNOTES:

[45-1] Reeves's translation. In _Origines Islandicae_, Vol. II., p. 598, this saga is called "The Story of the Wineland Voyages, commonly called The Story of Eric the Red."

[45-2] The original word for "Brief History" also means "section," "episode," "little story," _i.e._, extract or abbreviated account.

[46-1] About 985 (983-986). One vellum of the _Landnama-bok_ (Book of Settlements) says sixteen, the other fifteen years.

[46-2] Bishop Frederick was from "Saxland" (Saxony). According to the Kristni-Saga he came to Iceland "in the summer when the land had been settled one-hundred-and-seven winters," _i.e._, in 981. He made but little headway in preaching Christianity.

[47-1] _Hafgerdingar_ (sea-rollers) are supposed to have been earthquake waves, and the lines evidently refer to such tidal-waves caused by an unusually severe earthquake in the year 986. See Reeves, p. 180, (63). The prose sense of the stave is: "I beg the blessed friend of the monks to further our voyage. May the Lord of the heavens hold his hand over me."

[49-1] "Certainly a marvellous coincidence, but it is quite in character with the no less surprising accuracy with which the explorers of this history [_i.e._, the Flat Island Book narrative] succeeded in finding 'Leif's-booths' in a country which was as strange to them as Greenland to Biarni." (Reeves.)

[50-1] Earl Eric ruled in Norway from 1000 to 1015.

[52-1] These two words designate positions of the sun at two points of time. Early commentators got much more definite results from this observation than later ones, with scientific assistance, have succeeded in getting. Largely on the basis of it, Rafn (in _Antiquitates Americanae_), concluded that Vinland was in Rhode Island. Both Storm and Reeves, after detailed investigation, declare that it cannot be shown from this passage how far to the south Vinland was located. Captain Phythian, U.S.N., who has given the question careful consideration, says: "The data furnished are not sufficiently definite to warrant a more positive assertion than that the explorers could not have been, when the record was made, farther north than Lat. [say] 49 deg.." See Reeves, p. 181, (66).

[56-1] Evidently an incorrect statement. _Landnama-bok_, the authority on genealogical matters, says: "His son was Thorbiorn, father of Gudrid who married Thorstein, son of Eric the Red, and afterwards Thorfinn Karlsefni." Thori Eastman (the Norwegian) is not mentioned in the _Landnama-bok_.

[62-1] This cruel virago plays a much less conspicuous part in the version of Hauk's Book and AM. 557.

[65-1] "A weather-vane, or other ornament at the point of the gable of a house or upon a ship." (Fritzner.)

FROM ADAM OF BREMEN'S[67-1] DESCRIPTIO INSULARUM AQUILONIS

Moreover he[67-2] spoke of an island in that ocean[67-3] discovered by many, which is called Vinland, for the reason that vines grow wild there, which yield the best of wine. Moreover that grain unsown[67-4] grows there abundantly, is not a fabulous fancy, but, from the accounts of the Danes, we know to be a fact. Beyond this island, it is said, that there is no habitable land in that ocean, but all those regions which are beyond are filled with insupportable ice and boundless gloom, to which Martian thus refers: "One day's sail beyond Thile the sea is frozen." This was essayed not long since by that very enterprising Northmen's prince, Harold,[68-1] who explored the extent of the northern ocean with his ship, but was scarcely able by retreating to escape in safety from the gulf's enormous abyss, where before his eyes the vanishing bounds of earth were hidden in gloom.

FOOTNOTES:

[67-1] Adam of Bremen was a prebendary and writer on ecclesiastical history. The _Descriptio Insularum Aquilonis_ is an appendix to his _Gesta Hammaburgensis Ecclesiae Pontificum_. For the preparation of his work on the "Northern Islands," Adam spent some time at the Danish court, where he obtained much information from the king, Svend Estridson (1047-1076), an unusually well informed monarch. Adam's work was undoubtedly completed before the king's death, which occurred in 1076. The _Descriptio_ was first printed in Lindenbrog's edition of Adam's work, published in 1595, which thus contains the first printed allusions to Vinland. Rafn gives a facsimile of one of the manuscripts, for part of the passage.

[67-2] Svend Estridson, king of Denmark.

[67-3] Immediately before this extract, the author describes the islands in the northern seas--among them Iceland--and then proceeds to speak of newer lands "deeper in the ocean," first of all Greenland, "far up towards the Swedish or Riphaean mountains," distant five or seven days' sailing from Norway, then Halagland, somewhat nearer, where the sun is above the horizon fourteen days in summer, and lastly Vinland. That is, according to Adam, Vinland was in a northern region.

[67-4] The reference to the "unsown grain," and vines in the preceding sentence, are sufficiently characteristic to have enabled any one familiar with the "Saga of Eric the Red" to identify the new land as Vinland, even though it had not been named. It is interesting to note that the reference to "unsown grain" does not appear in the Flat Island Book saga.

[68-1] Evidently a reference to Harold the Stern-ruler (Haardraade). He was a contemporary of Svend Estridson, and ruler in Norway from 1047 to 1066. The saga of Harold Haardraade in Snorri Sturlason's "Saga of the Kings of Norway" contains no reference to any such expedition. Yet it would be quite in keeping with the other adventures of this much-travelled king to have undertaken such an expedition. It is to be noted that he did not, according to Adam, go in search of Vinland.

FROM THE ICELANDIC ANNALS[69-1]

ANNALES REGII

A.D. 1121. Bishop Eric[69-2] of Greenland went in search of Vinland.

FROM THE ELDER SKALHOLT[69-3] ANNALS

A.D. 1347. There came also a ship from Greenland, less in size than small Icelandic trading vessels. It came into the outer Stream-firth.[69-4] It was without an anchor. There were seventeen men on board, and they had sailed to Markland,[69-5] but had afterwards been driven hither by storms at sea.

FOOTNOTES:

[69-1] Besides the Annales Regii, which are the most important, there are several other Icelandic annals. All have, under the year 1121, the entry given here, (facsimile in Rafn). It is the only information that they give concerning Vinland, and is the last surviving mention of Vinland in the older Icelandic records. It must be remarked, however, that there were no contemporary annals as early as 1121; the earliest entries on Scandinavian events are gleaned from various sources, especially the early historians.

[69-2] According to the _Landnama-bok_ he was an Icelander, his full name being Eric Gnupson. He is also known as Eric Uppsi. He was, according to some accounts, the first bishop of Greenland. The exact date of his consecration is not known; but the Lawman's Annals have, under date of 1112, these words: "Bishop Eric's expedition," referring no doubt to his departure from Iceland. There is no record of his consecration at Lund (Sweden), the seat of the primate at that time, as in the case of his successor, Bishop Arnold. In regard to Bishop Eric's seeking Vinland, there is no indication anywhere why he went, or whether he ever returned. At any rate, the Greenlanders applied for a new bishop, and, according to the annals, one was consecrated in 1124; this was Bishop Arnold, and he reached Greenland the following year. See "The Tale of the Greenlanders," in _Origines Islandicae_, II. 748.

[69-3] So called because the manuscript was found at Skalholt, in southern Iceland. This entry (facsimile in Rafn) is corroborated, in abbreviated form, by the Annals of Gottskalk, in these words: "A ship came then from Greenland, which had sailed to Markland, and there were eighteen men on board."

[69-4] Stream-firth is on the western coast of Iceland.

[69-5] One of the new lands mentioned in the sagas of the Vinland voyages.

PAPAL LETTERS CONCERNING THE BISHOPRIC OF GARDAR IN GREENLAND DURING THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY[70-1]

LETTER OF NICHOLAS V., _September_ 20, 1448

Called by a command from on high to preside over all the churches in the exercise of our apostolic duty, with the Lord's help we employ all our solicitude in laboring for the salvation of souls redeemed by the precious blood of Christ, and we strive earnestly to restore to a state of peace and tranquillity, not only those who are frequently tossed about by the storms of impiety and error, but also those who are involved in the hardships and whirlwinds of persecution. Profoundly impressed therefore with the responsibility of our position, it is not difficult to understand how our mind was filled with bitterness by the tearful lamentations[71-1] which have reached our ears from our beloved children, the native and other inhabitants of the island of Greenland, a region situated at the uttermost end of the earth. The island, belonging[71-2] to the kingdom of Norway, and under the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the Archbishop of Drontheim,[71-3] received the faith of Christ almost six[71-4] centuries ago, through the piety of blessed King Olaf, and preserved it steadfastly and inviolably in accordance with the tradition of the Roman Church, and the Apostolic See. After their conversion, the people of this island, with untiring and characteristic devotion, erected many temples[71-5] to the worship of God and his saints, as well as a magnificent cathedral,[71-6] in which divine worship was diligently celebrated, until about thirty[71-7] years ago, when God permitting it, a barbarous and pagan fleet from neighboring shores[71-8] invaded the island, laying waste the land with fire and sword, and destroying the sacred temples. Just nine parish churches were left standing. To these are attached, it is said, parishes of very great extent. These churches are left intact, because being situated in the mountain fastnesses, they were inaccessible to the barbarian hordes, who, after completing their work of destruction, led captive to their shores the unfortunate inhabitants of both sexes, and more particularly those who seemed best able to bear the hardships of servitude and tyranny. But as the same complaint sets forth, many of these captives, after a time, returned to their native land. They set to work to rebuild their ruined homes, and were particularly desirous of restoring divine worship to its former splendor. Because, however, of their past calamities, as well as the added trials of famine and want, they had not wherewith to support priests or bishop. They have been consequently during these thirty years past without the comfort and ministry of bishop or priest, unless some one of a very zealous disposition, and at long intervals, and in spite of danger from the raging sea, ventured to visit the island and minister to them in those churches which the barbarians had left standing. Having acquainted us with this deplorable state of affairs, and knowing our paternal solicitude, they have supplicated us to come to their rescue in this their hour of spiritual need. Our hearts have been moved by the prayers of the people of Greenland, but not being sufficiently acquainted with the circumstances, we direct and command you, or either of you,[73-1] beloved brothers, who as we understand are the bishops living nearest to that island, to institute a diligent inquiry as to whether things are as they have been reported to us, and if you should find them so, and the number of people warrant it, and if they are in a condition to provide sufficiently, we command you or either of you, to send worthy priests who will minister to them, erect churches, govern parishes, and administer the sacraments.

Moreover, if you or either of you should deem it expedient, and in this you will consult, of course, the metropolitan,[73-2] if his residence be not too far away from you, we empower you to select and consecrate a bishop, having first required him to take the usual oath to us and the Roman See. Be mindful, however, that we burden your conscience with this work, and we grant you, or either of you, full authority to carry it out, even if there should exist any constitution of the Apostolic See, general councils, canonical or other statutes to the contrary.

Given at Rome as dated above in the second year of our pontificate.

LETTER OF ALEXANDER VI.; WRITTEN IN THE FIRST YEARS OF HIS PONTIFICATE[73-3]

It has been reported to us that in the diocese of Gardar in Greenland, situated at the confines of the known world, the inhabitants, because of the scarcity of bread, wine and oil, live for the most part on dried fish and milk products. Wherefore because of the difficulty of passing through such immense quantities of ice, and likewise because of the poverty of the land, and the scant means of living, ships rarely visit its shores. We have learned in fact that no vessel has touched there during the past eighty years, and if a voyage be made at all, it must be in the month of August, when the ice has broken up. On this account, during eighty years no bishop or priest has resided personally among those people, and by reason of this, we are informed that many who were formerly Catholics have forgotten the faith of their baptism, and that no memory of the Christian religion is found, except a corporal, which is shown to the people once a year, and on which it is said the last priest who officiated there consecrated the body of Christ a hundred years ago.[74-1] In consideration of these things, Innocent the VIII., our predecessor of happy memory, wishing to provide a proper pastor for those forlorn people, conferred with his brethren, of whom we were one, and elected Matthias, our venerable brother, a member of the Order of St. Benedict, as well as professed monk, at our suggestion, and while we were still in minor orders, to be Bishop of Gardar. This good man, fired with great zeal to recall those people from the way of error to the practice of their faith, is about to undertake this perilous voyage and laborious duty.[74-2] We, on our part, accordingly, recognizing the pious and praiseworthy purpose of the same elect, and wishing to succor in some manner his poverty, which is very great indeed, command the officials of our chancery, as well as those of our palace, under pain of excommunication _ipso facto_ to be incurred, that all apostolic letters destined for the church of Gardar, be written gratis for the glory of God alone, without exacting or charging any stipend; and we command the clergy and notaries of our palace to forward all letters to the above mentioned bishop, without demanding any payment whatsoever for services rendered.

To him everything must be free, other things to the contrary notwithstanding.

FOOTNOTES:

[70-1] In 1893 an American in Rome, Mr. J.C. Heywood, one of the papal chamberlains, brought out, in a very small edition (twenty-five copies), a book of photographic facsimiles of documents in the Vatican relating to Greenland and the discovery of America, _Documenta Selecta e Tabulario Secreto Vaticano_. The Latin text of those here presented may be found in Fischer, _Discoveries of the Northmen_, pp. 49-51. A translation of all was made for the Tennessee Historical Society by Rev. John B. Morris and printed in Vol. IX. of the society's organ, the _American Historical Magazine_. Using this translation, we have printed Letters IX. and X. as the only ones that contain anything of particular interest concerning the Gardar bishopric in Greenland, excepting, possibly, the following sentence from Letter II. (December 4, 1276), to the Archbishop of Drontheim: "Your Fraternity having been explicitly directed by letters apostolic to visit personally all parts of the kingdom of Norway, for the purpose of collecting the tithes due the Holy Land, has informed us that this seems almost impossible, when it is taken into consideration that the diocese of Gardar in Greenland is so remote from your metropolitan see and kingdom, that five years or more would be consumed in going thither and returning." It has been inferred, on account of the length of this time, that the Vinland colony was included. There is no documentary evidence of this. The papal letters contain no reference to Vinland.

[71-1] No record of these reports from Greenland has been found.

[71-2] Both Iceland and Greenland came under Norwegian rule in 1261, during the reign of Haakon Haakonson (1217-1263).

[71-3] In Norway.

[71-4] Only four and a half centuries before this time. Olaf Tryggvason, who reigned from 995 to 1000, sent Leif Ericson as a missionary to Greenland in the year 1000.

[71-5] According to Northern chorography, the Eastern Settlement had one hundred and ninety farmsteads, twelve churches, and two monasteries; the Western Settlement had ninety farmsteads and three churches.

[71-6] The cathedral (hardly magnificent) was in the Eastern Settlement (_i.e._, in southern Greenland), no doubt the present Kakortok. The village of Gardar, which gave its name to the bishopric, was at the present Kaksiarsuk. The authority which makes this identification possible, is Ivar Bardsen's description of Greenland written in that country in the fourteenth century. He was for many years steward to the Gardar bishopric. An English version of Bardsen's description is printed in Major's _The Voyages of the Venetian Brothers Zeno_ (London, 1873). See also Fiske, _The Discovery of America_, pp. 239 and 242.

[71-7] That is, about 1418. The last notice of Greenland based on Northern tradition is from the year 1409, telling of a marriage ceremony performed by Endride Andreson, the last bishop. See Laing's _The Sagas of the Norse Kings_ (London, 1889), p. 177.

[71-8] From Ivar Bardsen's description of Greenland it is known that the Greenlanders first came in conflict with the Eskimos during the fourteenth century. He was appointed to lead an expedition from the Eastern Settlement against the Skrellings (Eskimos), who had taken possession of the Western Settlement. When he arrived there the Skrellings had departed, and they found nothing but ruins and some cattle running wild. See _Antiquitates Americanae_, p. 316.

The letter of Nicholas V. refers to an attack on the Western Settlement, of which there is no other recorded evidence. It is not likely that it will ever be possible to determine whether the settlement owed its final destruction to the irruptions of the Eskimos, "to the ravages of pestilence, to the enforced neglect of the mother country--itself during the fifteenth century too often in sore straits--to the iniquitous restrictions in commerce imposed by the home government, or to a combination of several of these evils." There was a regular succession of bishops from 1124 to the end of the fourteenth, or perhaps the beginning of the fifteenth century.

[73-1] Addressed to the two bishops of Skalholt and Holar, in Iceland.

[73-2] The Archbishop of Drontheim in Norway.

[73-3] Alexander VI. was pope from 1492 to 1503.

[74-1] Evidently this is only an approximate statement.

[74-2] There are no records that this man ever reached either Greenland or Iceland. The Greenland colony was not entirely forgotten by the home government (Denmark-Norway). In the beginning of the sixteenth century, Archbishop Valkendorf of Drontheim had agitated the question of searching for the Greenland colony. During the reign of Frederick II. of Denmark-Norway, Mogens Heinesen was in 1579 sent out, but he did not reach the island. The Englishman John Davis, in 1585, visited the western coast of Greenland, but found no Europeans.

ORIGINAL NARRATIVES OF THE VOYAGES OF COLUMBUS

ARTICLES OF AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE LORDS THE CATHOLIC SOVEREIGNS AND CRISTOBAL COLON[77-1]

The things prayed for, and which Your Highnesses give and grant to Don Cristobal Colon[77-2] as some recompense for what he is to discover in the Oceans, and for the voyage which now, with the help of God, he has engaged to make therein in the service of Your Highnesses, are the following:

Firstly, that Your Highnesses, as actual Lords of the said Oceans, appoint from this date the said Don Cristobal Colon to be your Admiral in all those islands and mainlands which by his activity and industry shall be discovered or acquired in the said oceans, during his lifetime, and likewise, after his death, his heirs and successors one after another in perpetuity, with all the pre-eminences and prerogatives appertaining to the said office, and in the same manner as Don Alfonso Enriques, your High Admiral of Castile,[78-1] and his predecessors in the said office held it in their districts.--It so pleases their Highnesses. Juan de Coloma.

Likewise, that Your Highnesses appoint the said Don Cristobal Colon to be your Viceroy and Governor General in all the said islands and mainlands and in the islands which, as aforesaid, he may discover and acquire[78-2] in the said seas; and that for the government of each and any of them he may make choice of three persons for each office, and that Your Highnesses may select and choose the one who shall be most serviceable to you; and thus the lands which our Lord shall permit him to discover and acquire for the service of Your Highnesses, will be the better governed.--It so pleases their Highnesses. Juan de Coloma.

Item, that of all and every kind of merchandise, whether pearls, precious stones, gold, silver, spices, and other objects and merchandise whatsoever, of whatever kind, name and sort, which may be bought, bartered, discovered, acquired and obtained within the limits of the said Admiralty, Your Highnesses grant from now henceforth to the said Don Cristobal, and will that he may have and take for himself, the tenth part of the whole, after deducting all the expenses which may be incurred therein, so that of what shall remain clear and free he may have and take the tenth part for himself, and may do therewith as he pleases, the other nine parts being reserved for Your Highnesses.--It so pleases their Highnesses. Juan de Coloma.

Likewise, that if on account of the merchandise which he might bring from the said islands and lands which thus, as aforesaid, may be acquired or discovered, or of that which may be taken in exchange for the same from other merchants here, any suit should arise in the place where the said commerce and traffic shall be held and conducted; and if by the pre-eminence of his office of Admiral it appertains to him to take cognizance of such suit; it may please Your Highnesses that he or his deputy, and not another judge, shall take cognizance thereof and give judgment in the same from henceforth.--It so pleases their Highnesses, if it appertains to the said office of Admiral, according as it was held by Admiral Don Alfonso Enriques, and others his successors in their districts, and if it be just. Juan de Coloma.

Item, that in all the vessels which may be equipped for the said traffic and business, each time and whenever and as often as they may be equipped, the said Don Cristobal Colon may, if he chooses, contribute and pay the eighth part of all that may be spent in the equipment, and that likewise he may have and take the eighth part of the profits that may result from such equipment.--It so pleases their Highnesses. Juan de Coloma.

These are granted and despatched, with the replies of Your Highnesses at the end of each article, in the town of Santa Fe de la Vega of Granada, on the seventeenth day of April in the year of the nativity of our Saviour Jesus Christ, one thousand four hundred and ninety-two. I the King. I the Queen. By command of the King and of the Queen. Juan de Coloma. Registered, Calcena.

FOOTNOTES:

[77-1] The Spanish text is that printed by Navarrete in his _Coleccion de los Viages y Descubrimientos_, etc. (Madrid, 1825), II. 7-8, and taken from the Archives of the Duke of Veragua. The translation is that of George F. Barwick printed by Benjamin Franklin Stevens in his _Christopher Columbus His Own Book of Privileges_, 1502, etc. (London, 1893), pp. 42-45, with such slight changes (chiefly of tenses) as were necessary to bring it into conformity with the text of Navarrete. This document is also given in English translation in _Memorials of Columbus_ (London, 1823), pp. 40-43. That volume is a translation of G.B. Spotorno, _Codice Diplomatico Colombo-Americano_ (Genoa, 1823).

[77-2] In this edition of the Narratives of the Voyages of Columbus his name in the translation of the original documents will be given in the form used in the originals. During his earlier years in Spain Columbus was known as Colomo, the natural Spanish form corresponding to the Italian Colombo. At some time prior to 1492 he adopted the form Colon, apparently to make more probable his claim to be descended from a Roman general, Colonius, and to be related to the French admiral, Coullon, called in contemporary Italian sources Colombo, and Columbus in Latin. In modern texts of Tacitus the Roman general's name is Cilonius, and modern research has shown that the French admiral's real name was Caseneuve and that Coullon was a sobriquet added for some unknown reason. On the two French naval commanders known as Colombo or Coullon and the baselessness of Columbus's alleged relationship see Vignaud, _Etudes Critiques sur la Vie de Colomb_ pp. 131 ff.

[78-1] In 1497 Columbus at his own request was supplied with a copy of the ordinances establishing the admiralty of Castile so that he might have a documentary enumeration of his prerogatives in the Indies. This official copy he preserved in the collection of his papers known as the _Book of Privileges_, and the translation of the documents relating to the Admiralty of Castile is given in Stevens's edition of the _Book of Privileges_, pp. 14 ff. This dignity of Admiral comprised supreme or vice-regal authority on the sea and the general range of legal jurisdiction in determining suits of law that is enjoyed by modern courts of admiralty. A translation of Columbus's exposition of his rights derived from his admiralty of the islands in the Ocean may be found in P.L. Ford, _Writings of Columbus_ (New York, 1892), pp. 177-198, taken from _Memorials of Columbus_ (London, 1823), pp. 205-223. For a summary of these powers _cf._ the _Titulo_ that follows.

[78-2] It is a remarkable fact that nothing is said in this patent of discovering a route to the Indies. It is often said that the sole purpose of Columbus was to discover such a route, yet it is clear that he expected to make some new discoveries, and that if he did not, the sovereigns were under no specified obligations to him. Patents are usually drawn on the lines indicated by the petitioner. Can we conclude that the complete silence of the articles as to the Indies means that Ferdinand and Isabella refused to make any promises if Columbus only succeeded in reaching the known East Indies and could gain for them no new possessions?

TITLE GRANTED BY THE CATHOLIC SOVEREIGNS TO CRISTOBAL COLON OF ADMIRAL, VICEROY AND GOVERNOR OF THE ISLANDS AND MAINLAND THAT MAY BE DISCOVERED[81-1]

Don Ferdinand and Donna Isabella, by the grace of God King and Queen of Castile, Leon, Aragon, Sicily, Granada, Toledo, Valencia, Galicia, Majorca, Seville, Sardinia, Cordova, Corsica, Murcia, Jaen, Algarbe, Algeciras, Gibraltar, and the Canary Islands; Count and Countess of Barcelona; Lords of Biscay and Molina; Dukes of Athens and Neopatria; Counts of Roussillon and Cerdagne, Marquises of Oristano and Goziano; Forasmuch as you, Cristobal Colon, are going by our command, with some of our ships and with our subjects, to discover and acquire certain islands and mainland in the ocean, and it is hoped that, by the help of God, some of the said islands and mainland in the said ocean will be discovered and acquired by your pains and industry; and as it is a just and reasonable thing that since you incur the said danger for our service you should be rewarded for it, and since we desire to honor and favor you on account of what is aforesaid, it is our will and pleasure that you, the said Cristobal Colon, after you have discovered and acquired the said islands and mainland in the said ocean, or any of them whatsoever, shall be our Admiral of the said islands and mainland which you may thus discover and acquire, and shall be our Admiral and Viceroy and Governor therein, and shall be empowered from that time forward to call and entitle yourself Don Cristobal Colon, and that your sons and successors in the said office and charge may likewise entitle and call themselves Don, and Admiral and Viceroy and Governor thereof; and that you may have power to use and exercise the said office of Admiral, together with the said office of Viceroy and Governor of the said islands and mainland which you may thus discover and acquire, by yourself or by your lieutenants, and to hear and determine all the suits and causes civil and criminal appertaining to the said office of Admiralty, Viceroy, and Governor according as you shall find by law, and as the Admirals of our kingdoms are accustomed to use and exercise it; and may have power to punish and chastise delinquents, and exercise the said offices of Admiralty, Viceroy, and Governor, you and your said lieutenants, in all that concerns and appertains to the said offices and to each of them; and that you shall have and levy the fees and salaries annexed, belonging and appertaining to the said offices and to each of them, according as our High Admiral in the Admiralty of our kingdoms levies and is accustomed to levy them. And by this our patent, or by the transcript thereof signed by a public scrivener, we command Prince Don Juan, our very dear and well beloved son, and the Infantes, dukes, prelates, marquises, counts, masters of orders, priors, commanders, and members of our council, and auditors of our audiencia, alcaldes, and other justices whomsoever of our household, court, and chancery, and sub-commanders, alcaldes of castles and fortified and unfortified houses, and all councillors, assistants, regidores, alcaldes, bailiffs, judges, veinticuatros, jurats, knights, esquires, officers, and liege men[82-1] of all the cities, towns, and places of our kingdoms and dominions, and of those which you may conquer and acquire, and the captains, masters, mates, officers, mariners, and seamen, our natural subjects who now are or hereafter shall be, and each and any of them, that upon the said islands and mainland in the said ocean being discovered and acquired by you, and the oath and formality requisite in such case having been made and done by you or by him who may have your procuration,[83-1] they shall have and hold you from thenceforth for the whole of your life, and your son and successor after you, and successor after successor for ever and ever, as our Admiral of the said ocean, and as Viceroy and Governor of the said islands and mainland, which you, the said Don Cristobal Colon, may discover and acquire; and they shall treat with you, and with your said lieutenants whom you may place in the said offices of Admiral, Viceroy, and Governor, about everything appertaining thereto, and shall pay and cause to be paid to you the salary, dues and other things annexed and appertaining to the said offices, and shall observe and cause to be observed toward you all the honors, graces, favors, liberties, pre-eminences, prerogatives, exemptions, immunities, and all other things, and each of them, which in virtue of the said offices of Admiral, Viceroy, and Governor you shall be entitled to have and enjoy, and which ought to be observed towards you in every respect fully and completely so that nothing may be diminished therefrom; and that neither therein nor in any part thereof shall they place or consent to place hindrance or obstacle against you; for we by this our patent from now henceforth grant to you the said offices of Admiralty, Viceroy, and Governor, by right of inheritance for ever and ever, and we give you actual and prospective possession thereof, and of each of them, and power and authority to use and exercise it, and to collect the dues and salaries annexed and appertaining to them and to each of them, according to what is aforesaid. Concerning all that is aforesaid, if it should be necessary and you should require it of them, we command our chancellor and notaries and the other officers who are at the board of our seals to give, deliver, pass, and seal for you our patent of privilege with the circle of signatures, in the strongest, firmest, and most sufficient manner that you may request and may find needful, and neither one nor the other of you or them shall do contrary hereto in any manner, under penalty of our displeasure and of ten thousand maravedis[84-1] to our chamber, upon every one who shall do to the contrary. And further we command the man who shall show them this our patent, to cite them to appear before us in our court, wheresoever we may be, within fifteen days from the day of citation, under the said penalty, under which we command every public scrivener who may be summoned for this purpose, to give to the person who shall show it to him a certificate thereof signed with his signature, whereby we may know in what manner our command is executed. Given in our city of Granada, on the thirtieth day of the month of April, in the year of the nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ one thousand four hundred and ninety-two. I the King. I the Queen. I, Juan de Coloma, Secretary of the King and of the Queen, our Lords, caused this to be written by their command. Granted in form, Roderick, Doctor. Registered, Sebastian de Olano. Francisco de Madrid, Chancellor.

FOOTNOTES:

[81-1] Spanish text in Navarrete, II. 9-11. We omit the long preamble. Spanish text and facsimile of Paris Codex in Stevens, _Christopher Columbus His Own Book of Privileges_, pp. 49 ff. The translation is that of George F. Barwick. This document is also to be found in English in _Memorials of Columbus_ (London, 1823), pp. 52-57.

[82-1] Audiencia means the king's court of justice; regidores are roughly equivalent to members of a town council. The Navarrete text has _corregidores_, town governors appointed by the king. Veinticuatros were town councillors, so called because commonly 24 in number. Jurats were municipal executive officers in Aragon. The original which is translated "liege men" is _Homes-Buenos_. Further explanations of these offices may be found in Hume, _Spain, Its Greatness and Decay_, pp. 18 ff., and in _The Cambridge Modern History_, I. 348 ff.

[83-1] Procuration=power of attorney.

[84-1] The maravedi at this time was equal in coin value to about two-thirds of a cent.

JOURNAL OF THE FIRST VOYAGE OF COLUMBUS

INTRODUCTION

The contents of Columbus's Journal of his first voyage were first made known to the public in the epitome incorporated in Ferdinand Columbus's life of the Admiral, which has come down to us only in the Italian translation of Alfonso Ulloa, the _Historie del S.D. Fernando Colombo nelle quali s'ha particolare e vera relazione della vita e de' fatti dell' Ammiraglio D. Christoforo Colombo suo padre_, etc. (Venice, 1571). This account is accessible in English in Churchill's _Voyages_, Vol. II., and in Pinkerton's _Voyages_, Vol. XII.

Another epitome was prepared by Bartolome de Las Casas and inserted in his _Historia de las Indias_. This account was embodied in the main by Antonio de Herrera in his _Historia General de las Indias Occidentales_ (Madrid, 1601). It is accessible in English in John Stevens's translation of Herrera (London, 1725-1726).

These independent epitomes of the original were supplemented in 1825 by the publication by the Spanish archivist Martin Fernandez de Navarrete in his _Coleccion de los Viages y Descubrimientos que hicieron por mar los Espanoles desde fines del siglo XV._ of a considerably more detailed narrative (likewise independently abridged from the original) which existed in two copies in the archives of the Duke del Infantado. Navarrete says that the handwriting of the older copy is that of Las Casas and that Las Casas had written some explanatory notes in the margin. This longer narrative, here reprinted, was first translated by Samuel Kettell of Boston and published in 1827 under the title _Personal Narrative of the First Voyage of Columbus_. The next translation was that of Clements R. Markham for the Hakluyt Society in 1893. A third and very exact rendering appeared in 1903 in John Boyd Thacher's _Christopher Columbus_, Vol. I.

The translation given here is that of Sir Clements R. Markham with some slight revisions. When we recall the very scanty and fragmentary knowledge which we have of the Cabot voyages, and how few in fact of the great discoverers of this era left personal narratives of their achievements, we realize our singular good fortune in possessing so full a daily record from the hand of Columbus himself which admits us as it were "into the very presence of the Admiral to share his thoughts and impressions as the strange panorama of his experiences unfolded before him."[88-1] Sir Clements R. Markham declares the Journal "the most important document in the whole range of the history of geographical discovery, because it is a record of the enterprise which changed the whole face, not only of that history, but of the history of mankind."[88-2]

EDWARD G. BOURNE.

FOOTNOTES:

[88-1] Bourne, _Spain in America_, p. 22.

[88-2] _Journal of Christopher Columbus_, p. viii.

JOURNAL OF THE FIRST VOYAGE OF COLUMBUS

_This is the first voyage and the routes and direction taken by the Admiral Don Cristobal Colon when he discovered the Indies, summarized; except the prologue made for the Sovereigns, which is given word for word and commences in this manner_

In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ

Because, O most Christian, and very high, very excellent, and puissant Princes, King and Queen of the Spains and of the islands of the Sea, our Lords, in this present year of 1492, after your Highnesses had given an end to the war with the Moors who reigned in Europe, and had finished it in the very great city of Granada, where in this present year, on the second day of the month of January, by force of arms, I saw the royal banners of your Highnesses placed on the towers of Alfambra,[89-1] which is the fortress of that city, and I saw the Moorish King come forth from the gates of the city and kiss the royal hands of your Highnesses, and of the Prince my Lord, and presently in that same month, acting on the information that I had given to your Highnesses touching the lands of India, and respecting a Prince who is called Gran Can, which means in our language King of Kings, how he and his ancestors had sent to Rome many times to ask for learned men[89-2] of our holy faith to teach him, and how the Holy Father had never complied, insomuch that many people believing in idolatries were lost by receiving doctrine of perdition: YOUR HIGHNESSES, as Catholic Christians and Princes who love the holy Christian faith, and the propagation of it, and who are enemies to the sect of Mahoma and to all idolatries and heresies, resolved to send me, Cristobal Colon, to the said parts of India to see the said princes, and the cities and lands, and their disposition, with a view that they might be converted to our holy faith;[90-1] and ordered that I should not go by land to the eastward, as had been customary, but that I should go by way of the west, whither up to this day, we do not know for certain that any one has gone.

Thus, after having turned out all the Jews from all your kingdoms and lordships, in the same month of January,[90-2] your Highnesses gave orders to me that with a sufficient fleet I should go to the said parts of India, and for this they made great concessions to me, and ennobled me, so that henceforward I should be called Don, and should be Chief Admiral of the Ocean Sea, perpetual Viceroy and Governor of all the islands and continents that I should discover and gain, and that I might hereafter discover and gain in the Ocean Sea, and that my eldest son should succeed, and so on from generation to generation for ever.

I left the city of Granada on the 12th day of May, in the same year of 1492, being Saturday, and came to the town of Palos, which is a seaport; where I equipped three vessels well suited for such service; and departed from that port, well supplied with provisions and with many sailors, on the 3d day of August of the same year, being Friday, half an hour before sunrise, taking the route to the islands of Canaria, belonging to your Highnesses, which are in the said Ocean Sea, that I might thence take my departure for navigating until I should arrive at the Indies, and give the letters of your Highnesses to those princes, so as to comply with my orders. As part of my duty I thought it well to write an account of all the voyage very punctually, noting from day to day all that I should do and see, and that should happen, as will be seen further on. Also, Lords Princes, I resolved to describe each night what passed in the day, and to note each day how I navigated at night. I propose to construct a new chart for navigating, on which I shall delineate all the sea and lands of the Ocean in their proper positions under their bearings; and further, I propose to prepare a book, and to put down all as it were in a picture, by latitude from the equator, and western longitude. Above all, I shall have accomplished much, for I shall forget sleep, and shall work at the business of navigation, that so the service may be performed; all which will entail great labor.

_Friday, 3d of August_

We departed on Friday, the 3d of August, in the year 1492, from the bar of Saltes, at 8 o'clock, and proceeded with a strong sea breeze until sunset, towards the south, for 60 miles, equal to 15 leagues;[91-1] afterwards S.W. and W.S.W., which was the course for the Canaries.

_Saturday, 4th of August_

They steered S.W. 1/4 S.

_Sunday, 5th of August_

They continued their course day and night more than 40 leagues.

_Monday, 6th of August_

The rudder of the caravel _Pinta_ became unshipped, and Martin Alonso Pinzon, who was in command, believed or suspected that it was by contrivance of Gomes Rascon and Cristobal Quintero, to whom the caravel belonged, for they dreaded to go on that voyage. The Admiral says that, before they sailed, these men had been displaying a certain backwardness, so to speak. The Admiral was much disturbed at not being able to help the said caravel without danger, and he says that he was eased of some anxiety when he reflected that Martin Alonso Pinzon was a man of energy and ingenuity. They made, during the day and night, 29 leagues.

_Tuesday, 7th of August_

The rudder of the _Pinta_ was shipped and secured, and they proceeded on a course for the island of Lanzarote, one of the Canaries. They made, during the day and night, 25 leagues.

_Wednesday, 8th of August_

Opinions respecting their position varied among the pilots of the three caravels; but that of the Admiral proved to be nearer the truth. He wished to go to Gran Canaria, to leave the caravel _Pinta_, because she was disabled by the faulty hanging of her rudder, and was making water. He intended to obtain another there if one could be found. They could not reach the place that day.

_Thursday, 9th of August_